When the DoL office in Pokhara sought details from the hospital, it was informed that there are 93 Indian nationals working at the college. Of this, 36 are doctors, while the others are professors and other staffers. [break]
“When asked by the department, it was informed that there are 93 non-Nepali working at the hospital,” said Ravi Bhatta, chief of DoL office in Pokhara. “None of them have a work permit,” Bhatta added.
The college has been hiring Indian nationals for 18 years now without bothering to procure work permits for them. Bhatta said he would soon send the details of this to DoL. According to Bhatta, there is a provision in the Labor Act of sending non-Nepali working in Nepal without work permits back to their country. The Act also says hiring foreigners who don´t have work permits is illegal.
The college, however, claimed that it does not need to procure work permits for hiring people from India. It claimed that Manipal Education and Medical Group (Nepal) entered into an agreement with the government of Nepal in 1992 allowing the group to hire necessary human resources.
“We reached an agreement with the government of Nepal in 1992,” said Birendra Yadav, chief of the college´s human resources department. “We do everything according to the agreement. Other acts and laws of Nepal do not apply,” he added.
Though Yadav claimed the Labor Act does not apply at the college, a non-Nepali doctor was recently sacked from the college citing the same ground. Yadav refused to discuss the incident.
Meanwhile, Bhatta said the Labor Act allows organizations to hire foreign experts only if such experts are not available in Nepal.
Manipal refutes allegations of pay discrimination
The Manipal Education and Medical Group (Nepal) in a statement refuted allegations that the hospital pays less salary to Nepali doctors.
Nepali doctors at MCOMS are on strike since Sunday demanding equal pay for equal work.
“The disparity in salary has been cited as a reason for the strike. But the so called disparity in salary does not exist,” said Dr BM Nagpal, principal of the college.
“The only difference in remuneration is that of expatriate allowance. It is given to expatriate faculty on completion of two years to cover their extra expenditure that comes due to them being in a foreign land,” said Dr Nagpal, adding that this is a globally accepted norm.
He also criticized Nepali doctors for private practice.
“One issue that has not been mentioned is that of private practice by Nepali doctors. All clinical faculties are given Non Practicing Allowance to compensate for not undertaking private practice outside the hospital,” Dr Nagpal said.
“This is a provision all faculty, irrespective of their nationality, sign while joining Manipal as it is mentioned explicitly in their appointment letter. Nepali doctors have been practicing with impunity, some even during working hours. This also raises questions about their commitment to the patients and the hospital,” the statement further said.
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